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The Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) is a Protestant Denomination , the second largest Presbyterian church body in the United States after the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) . The PCA professes a strong commitment to Evangelism , missionary work, and Christian education. The church declares its goal to be "faithful to the Scriptures, true to the reformed faith, and obedient to the Great Commission." HISTORY The origins of the PCA lie somewhat in a re-alignment of American Presbyterian ism, which since the Civil War had generally been divided along North - South lines – the United Presbyterian Church In The United States Of America (UPCUSA) and the Presbyterian Church In The United States (PCUS), respectively. Movement towards a national merger (which eventually occurred in 1983 ) had begun to take shape by the early 1970s , and was accelerated by the decision of many dissident conservative congregations to withdraw from the PCUS. In , the denomination adopted its present name in 1974 . According to the PCA's official website, it "separated from the PCUS in opposition to the long-developing theological Liberalism which denied the deity of Jesus Christ and Inerrancy and authority of Scripture ." Additionally, the PCA espoused a Complementarian interpretation of Scripture regarding the matter of women in church offices, excluding them from the offices of Elder and Deacon , whereas the PCUS had begun accepting the Ordination of women over a decade earlier. According to PCUS author Rick Nutt, a less explicitly stated motive that was likely also influential in some quarters was the dissatisfaction with the PCUS's general opposition to the Vietnam War and support of the Civil Rights Movement and the Equal Rights Amendment . "The Tie that No Longer Binds: The Origins of the Presbyterian Church in America" in ''The Confessional Mosaic'' (ISBN 0-664-25151-X), pp. 236-256 The mid-1970s witnessed the PCA's first significant acquisition of congregations outside the South , when several conservative UPCUSA churches in Ohio and Pennsylvania joined the PCA. This move was precipitated by a case regarding an ordination candidate, Wynn Kenyon, denied by the Pittsburgh presbytery because of his refusal to support women's ordination to either the ministry or eldership (the presbytery's decision was upheld by the UPCUSA General Assembly). More significantly numerically, though, was the in Jackson, Miss. However, it must be said that RTS received its initial support at the time of its founding in the mid- 1960s by PCUS pastors and churches that would ultimately join the PCA, so in a sense, RTS served as the PCA's ''de facto'' seminary. One notable figure from the RPCES was evangelical cultural theologian Francis Schaeffer . Also that year and in 1983, on the eve of the UPCUSA's and PCUS' merger into the current Presbyterian Church (USA) (or PC(USA)), several PCUS churches that had originally decided to remain loyal in 1973 opted to defect to the PCA (some others joined the recently-formed Evangelical Presbyterian Church , unrelated to the 1950s and 1960s body of that name). A clause in the Plan of Union between the two mainline bodies allowed dissenting PCUS congregations to refrain from joining the merger and to join the denomination of their choosing. These moves laid the foundation for a body that has engaged in aggressive evangelistic work, most notably in church planting. Especially since the late 1980s , the PCA has focused its efforts toward establishing congregations in suburbs of fast-growing metropolitan areas, particularly in the South and the Western U.S. DOCTRINE AND PRACTICE The PCA professes adherence to the traditional statements of Presbyterianism -- the Westminster Confession Of Faith , the Westminster Shorter Catechism , and the Westminster Larger Catechism -- though it views them as subordinate to the Bible, which alone is viewed as the Inspired Word of God, a viewpoint which encompasses the doctrine of Inerrancy in matters of fact, history, and teaching. Much in the vein of pre- 1900s Presbyterianism, the PCA has sought to value academic endeavor a great deal more highly than more revivalist-oriented evangelical churches (e.g., the Southern Baptist Convention , the Assemblies Of God ). Apologetics in general and Presuppositional Apologetics in particular has become something of a specialty with many of its theological professors and higher-ranking clergy, and many also practice "cultural apologetics" (pioneered by men like Schaeffer) by engaging with and participating in Secular cultural activities such as Film , Music , Literature , and Art . Additionally, the PCA has enjoyed growing interest and participation in ministries of mercy such as caring for the Poor , the Elderly , Orphan s, people with Physical and Mental Disabilities , Refugee s, etc. As a result, the denomination has held several national conferences to help equip members to participate in this type of work, and several PCA affiliates such as Desire Street Ministries and New Song Fellowship have received national attention for their service to the community at large. Comparison to other Presbyterian denominations The PCA is more conservative than the larger PC(USA) on matters of Biblical and doctrinal interpretation and social and political stands. Like the PC(USA), the PCA accommodates different views of creation "Report of the Creation Study Committee" , 2000 and strives for racial reconciliation. "The PCA Pastoral Letter on Racism" , approved by the 32nd General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in America, June 2004 The PCA is generally less conservative than the Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC) and more conservative than the Evangelical Presbyterian Church , though the differences can vary from presbytery to presbytery and even congregation to congregation. For example, some churches in the PCA allow women to do anything a non- Ordained man can do, such as teaching co-educational Sunday School classes, whereas other churches in the denomination only allow women to teach women and children. Also, many churches have a contemporary style of music, while most in the OPC hold to the traditional Scottish / Scots-Irish practice of singing Psalms and older Hymn s. The OPC also generally has stricter requirements overall on its officers' subscription to their standards of doctrine. Nonetheless, the two denominations enjoy fraternal relations and cooperate in a number of ways, such as sharing control of a publication company, ''Great Commission Publications'' . AFFILIATIONS AND AGENCIES According to its official website, the Presbyterian Church in America has 1,345 churches and 294 missions throughout the USA and Canada . There were 338,873 communicant and non-communicant members (as of 2006 ). As a church with origins in that region, the PCA has its greatest concentration in the states of the Deep South , with more scattered strength in the Atlantic South , the upper Ohio Valley , and the Southwest . {Link without Title} Additionally, the denomination has its own agency for sending missionaries throughout the world (Mission to the World), its own ministry to students on college campuses ( Reformed University Ministries ), its own camp and conference center ( Ridge Haven , Brevard, North Carolina ), and its own college ( Covenant College , Lookout Mountain, Ga. , near Chattanooga, Tenn. ) and seminary ( Covenant Theological Seminary , St. Louis, Mo. ). Most recently, the PCA has begun publishing its own denominational magazine, ''byFaith'' . The church maintains headquarters in Lawrenceville, Ga. , a suburb of Atlanta , which was once home to the former PCUS (the reunited PC(USA) moved all offices to Louisville, Ky. in 1988 ). The PCA is a member of the North American Presbyterian And Reformed Council (NAPARC), an interchurch body representing conservative denominations in the Calvinist tradition. It is also a member of the National Association Of Evangelicals . NOTABLE FIGURES WITH PCA BACKGROUND
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